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Some people come into your life like a thunderstorm. That is how I feel about this book. It is a thunderstorm filled with loud thunder, lots of lightening, and fierce wind. And that is how Freeda and Winnalee come into town. Somehow Verdella sees them for what they really are-vunurable and in need of love and care. The author swept me away and I arrived in Dauber in the whirlwind that was Freeda and Winnalee. Poor Winnalee is carrying an urn filled with her mother's ashes and rarely puts it down. It is her security blanket. The characters are so life like that I felt like I was leaving my friends when the book ended. ( )

A tiny bit superficial or cliched, but much less so than, say, [b:Because of Winn-Dixie|6308478|Because of Winn-Dixie|Kate DiCamillo|http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1275753644s/6308478.jpg|25169]. Touching, fun, a bit provocative. I want more by her, and more like this. ( )

This story told in a child's voice touched the wonder and belief in my own heart. The interaction of the well-developed characters and their impact on each other brought me right into their world. I found the book easy to read, but very thought-provoking. ( )

After reading Finn, Middlesex, and The Tipping Point in a six month period, my book club was ready for something lighter, and this book definitely fit the people. There's a lot of humor in this book about how free-spirited Winnie and Freeda Malone change the lives of an extended family living in a small town. This book is well-written and does deal with some adult subjects, but is still a lot of fun. ( )

A very enjoyable novel with a heartwarming friendship in the two main characters, nine year old Button and her new best friend Winnalee. The story takes place in a small town in 1961 WI as these two little girls spend every moment of the summer together learning about each other and the adults around them. All of the characters are finely drawn and each has their own realistic concerns, dreams and past secrets to share or hide from each other. Throw in a plot twisting mystery which will effect each of the characters and the novel adds some intrigue not only for the nine year olds but sadness for the adults. It is a very good story of friendship, family and the bonds that hold all of us together at specific times in our lives. A good read. ( )

For all those who longed to find a best friend and found it in themselves.

First words

I should have known that summer of 1961 was gonna be the biggest summer of our lives.

That skinny eleven-year-old boy sitting across the table from me with the wispy dishwater-blond hair and glasses, that's my twin brother, Milo, short for Myles.

Quotations

Last words

I let Aunt Verdella go on for a while, then I smiled, and I reminded her of what she and Winnalee had both once told me. That you have to go on believing anything's possible, or else, what's the point?

Wikipedia in English

Wisconsin, 1961. Evelyn “Button” Peters is nine the summer Winnalee and her fiery-spirited older sister, Freeda, blow into her small town–and from the moment she sees them, Button knows this will be a summer unlike any other.

Much to her mother’s dismay, Button is fascinated by the Malone sisters, especially Winnalee, a feisty scrap of a thing who carries around a shiny silver urn containing her mother’s ashes and a tome she calls “The Book of Bright Ideas.” It is here, Winnalee tells Button, that she records everything she learns: her answers to the mysteries of life. But sometimes those mysteries conceal a truth better left buried. And when a devastating secret is suddenly revealed, dividing loyalties and uprooting lives, no one–from Winnalee and her sister to Button and her family–will ever be the same.

"Wisconsin, 1961. Evelyn "Button" Peters is nine the summer Winnalee and her fiery-spirited older sister, Freeda, blow into her small town and from the moment she sees them, Button knows this will be a summer unlike any other. Much to her mother's dismay, Button is fascinated by the Malone sisters, especially Winnalee, a feisty scrap of a thing who carries around a shiny silver urn containing her mother's ashes and a tome she calls "The Book of Bright Ideas". It is here, Winnalee tells Button, that she records everything she learns: her answers to the mysteries of life. But sometimes those mysteries conceal a truth better left buried. And when a devastating secret is suddenly revealed, dividing loyalties and uprooting lives, no one from Winnalee and her sister to Button and her family will ever be the same."--Publisher's description.… (more)